Aevum
by No Promises
Summary: Begins toward the end of the 5th book (The Order of the Phoenix). Harry is cornered by Death Eaters, when a sudden accident transports him years into the future. WARNING: Contains some spoilers!
1. Aevum Prologue

Title: Aevum

Author: Pink Spyder

Premise: Begins toward the end of the 5th book (The Order of the Phoenix). Harry is cornered by Death Eaters, when a sudden accident transports him years into the future. From the moment it begins, it strays off the course of OotP, showing what might have happened, had he just picked a different door!!

WARNINGS: Contains some spoilers. :P Rated PG, as the author has no idea where this story is going to go after a certain point. _

R&R: Please? *whimper*

Disclaimer: I don't own 'Arry Potter, but I certainly do envy Joan Rowling (I hear she's richer than the Queen of England now!)

Prologue:

Beyond the Veil (The Battle for the Prophecy)

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"STUBEFY!" shouted Neville, wheeling around and waving Hermione's wand at the oncoming Death Eaters. "STUBEFY, STUBEFY!"

But nothing happened -- one of the Death Eaters shot their own Stunning Spell at Neville; it missed him by inches. Harry and Neville were now the only two left fighting the five Death Eaters, two of whom sent streams of silver light like arrows part them that left craters in the wall behind them. Harry ran for it as Bellatrix Lestrange sprinted right at him. Holding the prophecy high above his head he sprinted back up the room; all he could think of doing was to draw the Death Eaters away from the others.

He made his way to the door, returning once more to the circular room. Frantically, Harry chose a random door, bursting through as the Death Eaters scrambled after him. Slamming the door behind him, he panted a moment, quickly analyzing the room's layout. This room's walls were a dull, blank white, as were the floors, and it seemed nothing more than a 10 x 10 square. In the middle sat a large golden hour glass, with several knobs and dials that seemed quite unnecessary to Harry. 

Walking to the center of the room, Harry examined the hour glass with a distracted interest. Its little dials were whirling franticly, while the knobs seemed to hum at different tones, based on this whirling. Harry bent down for a closer look.

The door behind Harry burst opening, the Death Eaters pushing in. Feeling foolishly unprepared, he swept around, reaching for his wand. He wasn't halted by the four wands suddenly pointed menacingly at his head.

"Hand over the prophecy, Potter," snarled Lucius Malfoy, his patience long worn thin.

Harry glared at him defiantly, as though daring him to do something. "Let the others go, first!" he yelled, his voice turning to a growl.

"Ha!" laughed Bellatrix, from behind Malfoy, "And they told us you were intelligent, boy. Look around; you're in no position to bargain." She smirked, a manic gleam in her eyes.

"Well, then," Harry growled, "I guess we'll have to do this the hard way." He gripped his wand. At this moment, he was so afraid, he was past fear. All logic seemed to have left him. 

"IMPEDIMENTA!" Harry screamed , a flash of light exploding from his wand. All at once, two of the Death Eaters rushed him, knocking him backwards. The prophecy flew out of his hands, and he heard it shatter against the wall to his right. Reaching out for anything to keep him from falling, he blindly groped in the air, until his hand closed around something cold, and smooth. He pulled the hourglass toward himself, hitting the ground with such an impact, that he saw stars.

Harry only had time to hear the angry screech of one Death Eater, before being completely enveloped by a bright blue light.

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	2. Aevum Chapter 1

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Blinking rapidly, Harry looked up at what should have been the ceiling of the white, square room. Instead, he could see nothing but darkness, with a slight musty smell of an abandoned house. He also noticed an another eerie difference in the situation--there was no longer any noise, or any sign that another person was in the room. 

Not taking time to deeply analyze this fortunate, but mysterious stroke of luck, Harry sat up, immediately regretting doing so. His head searing with a sudden, intense pain, he closed his eyes, letting a wave of nausea pass over him. "Errg…" he mumbled, trying to regain some bearings, "Bloody hell…nnn…"

Shaking his head, Harry slowly got to his feet, feeling around for anything in the darkness. Kicking something with a clang away, Harry felt along the cold walls, closing his hand over the doorknob. Pulling it open with a jerk, Harry blinked as a dim light met his eyes. He was now in the circular door room, though it was not the same as the last time he'd seen it.

The floor of the room was coated with a thin layer of dirt, looking as though it hadn't been used for years. Shutting the door behind him, Harry immediately turned to stop his mistake. However, as the door slammed shut, the circular room did not begin rotating, as it had on previous occasions. Shocked, Harry grabbed for one of the many doors. "Ron? Hermione?" he yelled loudly, frantically searching for any sign of life, "NEVILLE? GINNY? LUNA?" Opening it, he was greeted once again by the sight of the Prophecy Room, except it too had drastically changed in the few minutes he was gone.

The shelves, which had once been glowing with glittering lights, now looked like the site of a war zone. The crystal balls, once lined neatly amongst the many shelves, now lay shattered and broken on the floor. Dirt also covered every inch imaginable in this room, and many of the shelves were overturned. Backing up, Harry turned back to the circular room, now thoroughly frightened.

_What's going on? _he thought to himself, heart beating wildly. None of this made any sense. One moment, he had been trying to protect his friends, about to be attacked by Death Eaters, and the next, he was alone in a Ministry of Magic that looked as though it had been abandoned for several years.

Vainly trying to focus his thoughts, Harry let himself slip to the floor. Leaning back on one of the doors, he inhaled deeply, in an attempt to slow his runaway pulse. 

"Think," Harry whispered to himself, "What happened in there?" Searching through the scrambled bits of his memory, he replayed the scene in his mind. _Malfoy tackled me…I fell backwards, and the prophecy broke. I grabbed the hourglass on my way down, then there was this big flash of light._

_Of course! _Harry berated himself mentally. How could he be so stupid as to forget the hourglass? Getting quickly to his feet, he ran back through the door to the square room. Feeling around the floor, he felt his hands enclose the smooth handle of the hourglass once more. 

Bringing it with him to the dim light of the circular room, Harry began examining the hourglass closely. It was quite large, at least a foot long, and half a foot wide. Emblazoned on it's gold finish, the upper face read, "Ago Agere Egi Actum". The knobs and dials at the base of the hourglass, which were once so active, were now silent.

Not thinking it was entirely wise to start pressing buttons just yet, Harry instead pushed himself stood to his feet. He needed to get out of here and find someone who could explain what was happening. After examining each of the doors carefully, he opened the one opposite of the Prophecy Room. He once again faced the hallway to the elevator lift.

Harry's heart gave a jolt, at the sight of something so familiar. Running down the dimly lit hall, he practically jumped into the lift. Panting slightly, he leaned against the back wall of the lift. Suddenly, his hopes were squashed, as he realized the lift might not work. Everything seemed to be running on reserve power, though, so he at least ought to try.

Jabbing his finger against the button for the Atrium, Harry waited for the lift to moved. He began to frown, as nothing happened right away, but smiled broadly as the lift groaned to life, squeaking as its rusted golden grilles shut. 

As the lift ascended to the Atrium, Harry was able to catch a glimpse of each floor. Though a female voice no longer announced the levels, he still kept track, looking urgently as the lift stopped at Level Two. Desperately searching for Mr. Weasley, any sign of life in fact, Harry was quickly disappointed as there was not even a mouse occupying former Department of Magical Law.

The lift moved again, and Harry found himself looking at the ceiling. Where it had once been crowded with flying memos, cobwebs now sat. Oddly longing for the memos, Harry pushed the thought to the back of his mind, preferring not to think much just now. He had a nagging suspicion of what exactly had happened, and his stomach hurt just thinking about it. He hoped against hope he was wrong.

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	3. Aevum Chapter 2

The lift stopped at the floor of the Atrium, and Harry immediately felt although somebody slapped him. Everything, from the statues of the wizard, witch, centaur, and house elf, to the desk where he had had his wand inspected, was destroyed. 

Harry made his way into the room, carefully stepping over the shattered remains of a waiting bench. The dark wooden walls of the Atrium were scorched, and splintered. Cobwebs now hung freely, giving the room an ominous look. Even the golden symbols on the ceiling were now devoid of any movement. _What happened here?_, his mind screamed. It looked as though a tornado had torn through the Ministry of Magic, ravaging everything in its path. 

When Harry finally made it to the entrance elevator, he was more desperate for answers than ever. As the elevator shuttered and began its ascent, he thought over what he would do once he reached the surface. Of course, he would have to contact someone as soon as possible. He needed to get back to the wizarding world.

When the elevator reached the ground, Harry was not surprised to see it was still night. Pondering for a second, he withdrew his wand from his robes. Since the Ministry of Magic was obviously in no condition to punish underage wizardry, he didn't think a bit would hurt him now. Holding his wand out in front of him, he murmured, "Lumos", sparks flying from the end.

With a loud bang, the Knight Bus appeared before him, exactly as it looked the day when he, Ron, and Hermione, rode it back to Hogwarts. Out jumped a thin, purple uniformed man, who stood at attention, ready to help Harry into the bus. Harry grinned at the figure.

"'Arry! 'Arry Potter!" exclaimed the figure, as he gazed over Harry's face, "Ern, 'Arry's back!"

"Nice to see you, Stan," smiled Harry, happy to be with a familiar face once again.

"Wow, 'Arry, where ya bin?" Stan Shunpike continued on, enthralled, "I aven't seen ya for years, since the paper announced that you disappeared."

Harry grimaced. What Stan just said was all the proof he needed that his guess had been correct. "Ermm…" he began, as he stepped onto the Knight Bus's purple steps, "You wouldn't mind telling me…exactly how long ago was that?"

Stan followed Harry up the steps to the bus. "'most six years, I reckon. Yeh, six years since they last seen ya. Some folks were sayin that You-Know-Who got tha better of ya, but I knew better than that. I figured that kid would go down fightin, not all quiet without a sound."

It was within the light of the bus, where Harry was able to get his first real look at Stan. The conductor had matured much since the last time they'd met, his face cleared of it's acne, and his arms less dangly, and more filled. Harry was certain that he, himself, had not aged or changed, and wondered briefly what Stan thought of this.

As hearing this question, Stan stared in awe at him, again. "You dun look a day older since I last saw ya!" he grinned, then looked curiously down at the hourglass in Harry's hand, "So, where're ya goin' today, 'Arry?"

Harry twitched. He had been thinking much about this. He could possibly go back to Hogwarts, but there was no guarantee to find Dumbledore there, as, six years ago, he had been a fugitive from the Ministry, and not yet returned. There was also the option of going to Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, Sirius's parents' house, and the meeting place of the Order of the Phoenix. However, Harry was also unsure as to whether he'd find anyone there or not. Six years was a lot of time. He considered Diagon Alley for a moment, but pushed that thought away, as it might not be the best idea to be seen in public at the moment. It seemed a reckless thing to do. He mentally slapped himself for thinking of Privot Drive for the briefest of moments, though, it might be fun to see the look on his aunt and uncle's faces, when he waltzed in, unchanged, after six years of absence.

After mulling this over for another few moments, he replied, "Grimmauld Place, here in London." Stan nodded, pointing him back to a bed near the end of the bus. Harry, grateful for a place to lie down, thanked Stan, and headed to his bed. It wasn't until he set the hourglass next to the bed, and lay down, did all the injuries he'd sustained from the Death Eater battle come flooding over him. He clenched his teeth together in pain, mentally berating himself for not expecting this.

Breathing heavily for a few minutes, Harry gradually felt himself relax. Now that he wasn't focused on the pain of his injuries, he was free to reflect on the events of the day. It seemed years ago that he had broken into Umbridge's office, trying to communicate with Sirius, and Harry reminded himself that it, technically, HAD been years ago. He went through an entire six years, in a few moments.

Harry had a very good idea of what exactly happened to get him here. He had seen something like it before, when Hermione had a similar hourglass, which transported the user back in time. They used it to rescue Sirius and Buckbeak, when the Ministry locked Sirius in a room, giving a Dementor the go ahead to administer a Kiss of Death.

The hourglass from the Ministry of Magic ran on the same concept, except, in this case, it pushed Harry forward in time, instead of backward. Indeed, the Death Eaters who were about to tackle him, must have been very surprised to see him disappear in midair. He wondered what they told Voldemort, their master…had they taken credit for his death? He could certainly imagine them doing so, groveling at Voldemort's feet, kissing his robes, as they proclaimed their loyalty to him. Sickened, he cleared his mind, saving any speculative thought for another time.

With another loud bang, the Knight Bus stopped again, dropping off an ill-looking witch, who was clutching a rather large hand basket covered with cloth. Harry did not comment, but looked up slightly, as her hand basket began both growling and clucking, while emitting a strange scent of old cheese. The bus banged again, and set off, presumably to Grimmauld Place next.

Harry's mind stayed surprisingly clear for the rest of the trip, a skill which would have done him well when he tried to learn Occlumency. He was never able to complete his lessons, as Snape had banned him from ever setting foot inside his office again. Not that Harry saw this as a big loss.

When Harry left the Knight Bus, Stan gave him a great wave, welcoming him back any time he needed a ride. Harry smiled, nodding his head and waving, as the bus took off with another great bang. He turned to survey the houses, broken windowed and falling apart as he remembered them, and made his way to the space between Number Eleven and Number Thirteen. _Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place_, Harry thought to himself.

The moment he thought the number, a battered looking door appeared before him. Pausing before the door, he found his heart was beating wildly. What would he find here?

Harry stepped onto the doorstep, and knocked.

He felt his breath catch in his throat, as a young woman, with brown, bushy hair opened the door. "Who…" she began, but stopped dead in her tracks as she stared, face-to-face with a boy who disappeared from the world exactly six years ago.

Harry, not knowing what else to do, just grinned nervously. "Hey, long time no see, Hermione," he said, finally managing to find his voice.

For a moment, her eyes widened in deep shock, and Harry rushed forward to catch twenty-one year old Hermione Granger, who had just fainted to the ground.

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Quick Author's Note: Ooh…exciting! Heh, I need a break for now, so it might be at least a week or two before the next part is posted. Until then, you are free to read what I have done over and over again, until you insanely start dodging hourglasses, or anything with latin lettering, for that matter. That's what I'm doing with the Harry Potter books! ^_^; BTW, the letters inscribed on the hour glass…well, I kind of forgot what they meant (errgg…damn senile authors!), but they mean something like, "To set in motion". I'll get back to ya on that one. ^_^;


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